Synopsis

Like in any culture, Japanese kids grow up listening to the stories repeatedly told by their parents and grandparents. The boy born from a peach; the princess from the moon who is discovered inside a bamboo; the old man who can make a dead cherry tree blossom, etc. These short stories that teach kids to see both the dark and bright sides of life have passed traditional moral values from generation to generation.

Each half-hour episode of Folktales from Japan consists of three self-contained stories, well-known and unknown, with a special focus on heartwarming stories that originate from Tohoku, the northern region heavily touched by the earthquake of 2011. May this program help cheer up earthquake victims and cast a light of hope for them?

If like to learn about other culture tales, and in this case Japanese Folktales, you will probably enjoy this show.

The first thing you must have in mind is that the target public of this show is children. So if are expecting for something very elaborated that's not your show. With that in mind, let's go to the review.

The tales are like Aesop's fables, with a strong allegoric and moral background. But at the same time are simple. This simplicity is reinforced by the way the story is told, with clear and direct language since the narrator to characters.

The sound goes well with the animation, and if you decide just to listen to it you can 'see' what is going on. Both OP and ED are kind of sad and doesn't match with the show.

The art is also simple and clearly directed to children, but it is still beautiful and full of very well selected colors. Each character has a different design. The animation is economic, but fits the purposes of the show.

If you like folktales and learn about Japanese culture you will enjoy very much watching Furusato. And even this childish style of the whole series will seem very appropriate to you.read more

This has the feel of a show for young children. Similar to an adaptation of Aesop's fables for westerners, this anime tells traditional Japanese stories that have a strong moral aspect.

The art is unusual and reminds me of My Neighbours the Yamadas (Studio Ghibli). The sound also emphasises the children's show aspect with 'noises' for walking and so forth. The opening and ending songs are sugary and nothing special.

Each episode consists of two or three tales and I think that character development is good for such a short delivery time. These are excellent stories told by a narrator in the style of bed-time story, so sometimes the animation can feel unnecessary.

All that said, this anime is very enjoyable and I'm sure that many of these tales are referenced in other anime and manga. It is interesting to draw cultural comparisons between various culture's moral tales, and I am looking forward to learning more, despite the fact that this is a show for young children.

PS:
Excellent if you are learning Japanese, as the language seems much simpler. read more

Story (8/10)
The story of course just handles three japanese folklores in every episode. I really like folklores and myths from other countries so that is why I really enjoy this show.

Art (7/10)
I gave seven out of ten because the show is animate cute and very child-oriented. You could think that the whole show is drawn with oil crayon by the small and young watchers themselves.

SOund (6/10)
Of course there isn't much you can do with the sound. The intro and outro song are relaxing and make you feel as if you just stood up as a small kid early in the morning and ran to the tv to watch your favourite show. The story is often told with a female voice which describes what just happened or what the character are going to do.

Character (6/10)
six out of ten because they are very accurate told an described. You can't say much more about it since there aren't any self created characters.

Enjoyment (8/10) and Overall (8/10)
I love this series. They're short stories in an episode and I love to watch them in the morning with a cup of coffee or hot chocolate. They're very sweet and make you feel like a child again. It's definitely worth to watch it for then and now when you just want to make a pause from all those action or love or sci-fi anime.read more

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Let's take a quick jog around memory lane and remember those anime you used to watch and enjoy as kids. Feel the nostalgia and see if your favorites made the list and discover more that other children enjoyed.